KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaican Businessman and entrepreneur Hon. Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart died on January 4, 2021 at the age of 79 in Miami.

Hon. Stewart was born in Kingston on July 6, 1941. He grew up along the island’s North Coast.

The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) expressed sadness about Stewart’s death.
“We extend deepest condolences to his immediate family, his extended Sandals family and to the people of Jamaica on the loss of another Jamaican legend,” said an OECS statement calling him the visionary icon of Caribbean tourism.

Hon. Stewart attended college in England. After college, he founded Appliance Traders Ltd., selling air conditioners and appliances. In 1981 he founded the Sandals Resort chain and was its long-time owner and chairman. As it grew the enterprise became Sandals Resorts International.

Hon. Stewart founded the popular all-inclusive resort chains Sandals and Beaches. The OECS said,
“The greatest tribute that we can pay to this transformational figure is to ensure the continuation and continued impact of the legacy in the New Normal by bringing to the task of the re-invention of the Caribbean tourism sector, the same creative energy that he brought to the challenge and creation of his brand.”

“The Sandals and Beaches brand of indigenous all-inclusive luxury hotels have given prominence to the Caribbean region with its extensive international marketing and the extraordinarily high standards of hospitality and customer satisfaction that he defined. The legacy that he created is indelible and it lives on in the thousands of OECS Sandals employees in Antigua & Barbuda, Grenada, Saint Lucia (and soon, St. Vincent & the Grenadines) who are able to sustain their families every day.

“The greatest tribute that we can pay to this transformational figure is to ensure the continuation and continued impact of the legacy in the New Normal by bringing to the task of the re-invention of the Caribbean tourism sector, the same creative energy that he brought to the challenge and creation of his brand.”

Sandals was one of the first all-inclusive resorts and the first in the Caribbean to feature a swim-up bar. He later founded Beaches Resorts, which like Sandals, catered to couples only.

In 1994, Stewart bought a majority state in Air Jamaica and became its chairman.

In a tribute to Hon. Steward, Forbes Magazine said, “Stewart was one of the hospitality industry’s most vibrant personalities and founder of Sandals Resorts International, the world’s leading all-inclusive resort company. An unstoppable force, who delighted in defying the odds by exceeding expectations, Stewart single-handedly built the world’s most awarded vacation brand from one resort in Jamaica to over two dozen distinct resorts and villas throughout the Caribbean. He single-handedly changed the concept of the “all-inclusive” resort and changed how the world goes on vacation.”

Sandals Resorts International is a family-owned corporation and his son, Adam Stewart became chief operating officer in 2007 and will continue his management.

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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — A grant of up to US$50,000 is available to civil society organizations in St. Kitts and Nevis to implement or expand beekeeping under an Apiculture and Biodiversity project.

The funds are offered through the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grant Programme (SGP) under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Country Programme. The multi-country project aims to establish a sustainable apiculture industry in Saint Lucia. Its goal is to identify clear pathways to further the development of an apiculture industry in four Caribbean countries, including St. Kitts and Nevis. The other Caribbean countries are Dominica, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. Samoa, a country located in the Pacific, is also implementing the project.

Organizations interested in being part of this project must be registered with a local government agency and have at least one year of experience in raising bees, and harvesting, bottling and selling honey.

Applicants must to submit a Letter of Interest to GEF SGP UNDP National Coordinator via email il*******@***ps.org. Applications must be received on or before January 31, 2021.

The successful organization will work closely with the GEF SGP UNDP National Office to establish or expand an apiary as well as a honey processing plant.

The organization’s members must also participate in all virtual training; prepare and submit project reports; convene local and national meetings; participate in all international meetings; and train other small apiculturists to pass on the skills and lessons learnt.

The successful candidate will also liaise with persons in the other countries who are participating in this Apiculture and Biodiversity Project.

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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — Commissioner of Police, Hilroy Brandy, expressed heartfelt appreciation to the Government and people of St. Kitts and Nevis for supporting him and The Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force over the years.

During his opening statement at his first press conference for 2021, Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris, announced that Her Majesty the Queen had graciously considered a recommendation from his cabinet, through His Excellency the Governor General, to award the Commissioner with the Queen’s Police Medal (QPM). This was as a result of his distinguished and meritorious law enforcement service of almost 40 years.

The Prime Minister also disclosed some of the successes from 2020, mentioning that overall crime was down, and that the homicide rate specifically had fallen by some 20 percent, while the detection rate was up about 40 percent.

“Mr. Brandy’s excellent record in law enforcement has finally received the recognition and acclaim of Her Majesty,” said Hon. Dr. Harris. “I’m not sure whether he will be meeting her in person or virtually, but I want to commend him on this significant conferment at this time in his career and, of course, on behalf of all of us at Cabinet. I extend to you, again, Commissioner Brandy, our most sincere congratulations and best wishes.”

In response, when the Commissioner took to the lectern to answer questions directed to him at the press conference, he used the opportunity to say thank you.

“I also would like to say thanks to the people of St. Kitts and Nevis for the support over last year on behalf of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, in terms of our crime reduction and crime detection,” said Commissioner Brady. “We were very successful in 2020. We are looking forward to your continued support in 2021.

“I would also like to take the opportunity to thank the Minister of National Security and the Federal Cabinet, for making the request for the award for my long years of service and my hard work in The Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force,” said Brady. “Once again, I want to thank you very much.”

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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced two scholarship opportunities provided by the Republic of Serbia for 2021. The following are the terms by which interested persons may be granted this scholarship:

1. Applicants must be under the age of 21 years to apply for any bachelor’s programme, under 25 years to apply for any master’s programme and under 35 years to apply for any Doctoral programme.
2. The scholarship will contain free Serbian language preparatory courses online and intensive courses upon arrival in the Republic of Serbia; tuition for all levels of scholarship; 15,000 dinars (Serbian dollars) monthly to cover living expenses; accommodation and food in student centres; compulsory health insurance; and free resident visa.
3. The scholarship will not cover travel expenses to and from Serbia; the cost of city public transport in Serbia; or expenses for textbooks and work materials during studies.

Interested persons should contact the Human Resource Management Department for more on the terms and conditions of this scholarship programme. The deadline for applications to the programme, however, is Friday January 22, 2021.

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CHARLESTOWN, Nevis — Premier Hon. Mark A.G. Brantley, Minister of Finance, Human Resources et al. in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA), has resumed one-on-one consultations with members of the public at his office at Pinney’s, Estate, Nevis.

Premier Brantley began seeing members of the public on Friday, January 15 instead of the usual Thursday consultations. This was the first of his weekly consultations since taking a brief hiatus over the 2020 Christmas season.

Brantley said as Premier, a Cabinet minister in the Nevis Island Administration, and the elected member for St. Johns in the Nevis Island Assembly, making himself available to the Nevisian public is paramount.

“The idea really is to give people as much access as possible to the Premier and for them to have an audience and an ability to speak to me,” said Hon. Brantley. “That is part and parcel of what we’ve tried to do in terms of our good governance agenda; accessibility, ensuring that our people have access to the Premier, the highest office on Nevis; and that persons have the ability to air their grievances, air their concerns, and often times bring their suggestions.

“People come for a variety of reasons,” explained Brantley. “I have some people who simply come to pray for me, some people who come to talk to me and tell me about their children or their grandchildren. It’s not always people coming with a problem. Sometimes people just want an audience and an opportunity. I think in our democracy and how we practice it, that is a very good thing.”

The Premier said on average he would see upward of 20 persons over the course of the day, discussing issues that cut across several ministries.

“For several years, since 2013 when I first entered government, I’ve designated Thursdays as my one-on-one. I meet with anybody who wants to meet. People can come without an appointment and I’m proud to say that I’ve done that over the last seven years.

“Since I became Premier in 2017, I’ve continued that tradition,” said Brantley. “People come in large numbers sometimes to meet with me on a variety of matters; in fact, people have come from as far away as St. Kitts on a regular basis to meet with me on a number of issues. We hear what their concerns are and try our best to resolve them.”

The Premier’s one-on-one consultations will continue every Thursday. Persons needing urgent meetings can schedule an appointment on any week day.

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CHARLESTOWN, Nevis — The Ministry of Human Resources in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) is pleased to announce the call for Brazilian scholarship applications for 2021.

The Organization of American States (OAS), the International Cooperation Group of Brazilian Universities (CGBU), with the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) are offering 350 scholarship opportunities. Persons interested in pursuing studies in master’s or doctoral degree programmes at Brazilian universities are invited to apply. The scholarship benefits are as follows:

Full tuition waiver;
Grant of $1,200 USD;
Partial monthly stipend for living expenses; and
Free Portuguese language support.

The deadline for applications to be submitted to the Ministry of Human Resources is by Friday, January 22, 2021.

For additional scholarship information and application guidelines, kindly visit the links below or contact the following:

https://paec.caeddigital.net/#!/pagina-inicial
https://paec.caeddigital.net/#!/concurso-ingresso

Mrs. Shanola Murrey-Gill or Ms. Ronice Williams
Ministry of Human Resources
Nevis Island Administration
Email: sh****************@****ov.com or ro*************@****ov.com
Tel. No.: 469-5521 Ext. 5163/4

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CHARLESTOWN, Nevis — The Ministry of Human Resources in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) has received the call for the Taiwan MOFA and ICDF Scholarships 2021.

Interested persons are encouraged to exploit the opportunities made available by the Taiwan Government to pursue undergraduate and graduate studies. The Taiwan programmes are diversified in leadership and management development; journalism and mass communication; health care administration; cultural and creative industries; aquaculture technology and management; environment sustainable development; and more.

The scholarship benefits include airfare, housing, tuition fees, insurance, textbooks, and monthly allowances.

General Application Guidelines:

• One must apply to their preferred university as well as to the Taiwan Embassy in St. Kitts. The university will present a permission slip which must be included with the embassy’s application.
• Please NOTE that each applicant can ONLY apply for one programme, either ICDF or MOFA.
• Applicants are advised to complete a medical test after their application has been approved.
• Along with the completed application form, must also be original passport and education certificates as well as two copies of all documents. Copies must be clear (easily read) and precise (no cut-offs).
• Applications for both ICDF and MOFA must be submitted to the Ministry of Human Resources by Monday, February 22, 2021. Other notifications will specify a deadline in March; kindly note these dates are for applications to be received by the Embassy, not Human Resources. Therefore, the Ministry will refuse all applications received after February 22.

For further information on application information, eligibility etc., kindly visit the following links or contact the below listed persons:

ICDF
http://www.icdf.org.tw/ct.asp?xItem=12507&CtNode=30318&mp=2
http://web.icdf.org.tw/ICDF_TSP/WelcomeStart.aspx

MOFA
https://www.mofa.gov.tw/en/cp.aspx?n=A5C28AD214C3FD7C
https://taiwanscholarship.moe.gov.tw/web/scholarship.aspx

Ms Carol Boddie
Ministry of Education
Government of St. Kitts Tel. No.: 467-1484/467-1508

Mrs. Shanola Murrey-Gill
Ms. Ronice Williams
Ministry of Human Resources
Nevis Island Administration
Tel. No.: 469-5521 Ext. 5163/4

Mr. Daniel Kou
Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
Taylor’s Range, Basseterre, St. Kitts. Tel. No.: 465-2421

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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis continues to experience a gradual increase in the number of positive cases of COVID-19.

According to the Chief Medical Office, one additional coronavirus case was found on Saturday, January 16.

The returning national landed in the Federation on January 2, 2021 from the United States of America. The patient has been in quarantine at one of the COVID-19 certified hotels since arrival. The patient was duly notified and is now in isolation.

This additional case brings the total number of COVID-19 confirmed cases to 35 with 23 cases for St. Kitts and 12 cases for Nevis. Please note that 33 cases have fully recovered with zero deaths. There are now two active cases. These patients are stable and are being monitored. The risk of further cases occurring in the Federation remains very high.

A report from the Chief Medical Officer’s says: “We continue to adhere to the ‘St. Kitts & Nevis Health & Travel Protocols’ which can be found at website https://www.knatravelform.kn.

All front-line workers continue to adhere to the COVID-19 protocols along the corridor of containment between the ports of entry and hotel/accommodation sites. The Ministry of Health wishes to assure the general public that the following measures are being taken to restrict the spread of coronavirus:
• In-depth contact tracing to effectively assess the front-line workers with whom the recently diagnosed cases would have interacted; and
• quarantine, monitoring and testing of contacts as indicated.

“The Ministry of Health and the Federal Government assure all citizens and residents that every effort is being made to prevent the spread of this virus locally.

“With reports of the SARS -CoV-2 variant in the region and with increase in cases locally, more and more persons are adhering to the COVID-19 prevention and control measures which include:
• Wearing a face mask when in public places;
• maintaining good hand hygiene;
• maintaining physical distance of at least 6 feet from others when in public places; and
• avoiding crowds and events.

“These control measures work, and we are encouraging everyone to continue.

“Let us work together to maintain and protect the health and wellbeing of the people of the Federation,” the report concluded.

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